Snake Venom
by ArtikGato
Summary: Chapter Three is up! Love Conquers All! Inuyasha and Kagome have escaped the black clouds, and the Shikon no Tama is complete again! But, they are forced to make a hard decision... Inu x Kago and also a bit of Miroku x Sango.
1. Snake Venom

**Snake Venom**

**By ArtikGato**

Disclaimer: 'dis clamor!! Ahem... anyway, I own an Odie doll (which I now affectionately call Sessh-chan...^^"""), and my own dimented brain, but otherwise, I don't own anything. Including _Inuyasha_ and the characters mentioned in this fic...

Author's Notes: WARNING!!! This is a lemon. Those of you that are too young to be reading this stuff should turn back. (but hey, the R rating should have warned you against reading it anyway) Just thought I'd warn you... Anyway, this is a Miroku x Sango fic!! That's right, I've finally broken my train of Inu x Kagome fics!!  For those of you that would like to read my other _Inuyasha_ stories (that are NON-Lemons but are almost completely InuKago fics..), here are the storyid's:

A Tale of Two Shippos: (parody): storyid=1142313

Letters: (KagoInu romance): storyid=1153892

Moment of Weakness (KagoInu romance): storyid=1170637

Christmas Presents (KagoInu romance...again....): storyid=1192181

There is also one other fic, a KagoInu romance again, called 'Falling', which I stupidly wrote down the storyid for on my hand and then went and WASHED MY HANDS five minutes later... so yeah. If you feel you MUST read it then look up my bio page in the author index, I guess... well, enjoy the story!! (don't say I didn't warn you...)

            "TWO shards?!" Inuyasha bellowed. Kagome nodded.

            "Yeah, I can definetely feel two," she replied. Inuyasha was about to jump for joy, but then she stopped him.

            "The thing is...they're in opposite directions," she said. 

            "WHAT?!?!" he yelped.

            "What are we going to do?" Shippo asked.          

            "Kagome, are the shards moving right now?" Sango asked. Kagome closed her eyes, and nodded a few seconds later.

            "They'll both probably be long gone by nightfall. Our best bet is to split up," Miroku suggested. Then he elbowed Sango, who was standing next to him. "How about it Sango? We could go get the shard, and along the way, you could bear my chil-" WHAM!!! The monk was abruptly cut off by Sango's huge boomerang of epic proportions whacking him in the head, causing him jump back and yelp in pain.

            "You'd think he'd be used to it by now," Shippo said. Everyone shrugged, as Sango replaced her boomerang back on her back. Miroku carefully walked back up to the group, nursing his head.

            "It was _just_ a suggestion..." he started. 

            "Well, we're still going to have to split up to get to both shards," Inuyasha said.       

            "How about this. I'll go with Sango and Shippo to get one, and you two can go get the other one," Kagome suggested. Shippo looked overjoyed, Miroku looked faintly dissappointed, and Sango looked relieved. 

            "No deal, Kagome," Inuyasha said, seriously.

            "Why not?" she asked.

            "You _know_ that you can't sense Naraku's shards until he's close. He could spring an attack, and without one of us to protect you..." Inuyasha said, trailing off. Kagome nodded.

           "I get your drift. Sango is strong, but you're half-youkai, and Miroku has his air void," she replied. She looked from Inuyasha, to Miroku, to Sango, then back to Inuyasha. She sighed.

            "Sango, don't be mad, but I think you _are_ going to have to go with Miroku," Kagome said. 

            "...I don't have much of a choice, do I?" she asked. 

            "Sorry," Kagome apologized. The demon exterminator shrugged, then turned her attention to Miroku.

            "Listen, lech, I'm only going with you because it's not safe for any of us to travel alone. If you try _anything_, you're not going to like it," she warned him. He sighed.

            "All right," he replied. 

            "I'm _serious_!!" she exclaimed. He shrugged.

            "I know," he replied. Shippo suddenly spoke up.

            "Hey, who am _I_ going with?" he asked. Everyone looked at eachother, and shrugged. 

            "Why don't you come with _us,_ Shippo?" Kagome volunteered. 

            "Sure, make _me_ protect the weaklings!" Inuyasha replied. Shippo stuck his tongue out at the half-youkai. 

            "Just for that, I _will_ come with you," Shippo replied. Inuyasha glared at the youkai child, and made a move to lunge for him.

            "Sit!!" Kagome exclaimed. THWOCK!! Inuyasha hit the ground. 

            "One of these days, you're going to 'sit' me and I'm gonna fall on you!! _THEN_ you'll see how it feels!!!" Inuyasha retorted. Everyone was dead silent for a few seconds. Then they all burst out laughing, Inuyasha turning crimson and growling at everyone. 

_            "Okay, guys, your shard is a few miles south of here. It should be in some sort of a canyon or gorge," _

_            "I think I can sense it," _

_            "Good. So then you'll have no trouble finding it, Miroku?"_

_            "Nope," _

_            "Good,"_

_            "We'll meet back here tomorrow," _

_            "All right. Bye!!"_

            Sango sighed. She could not sense the shard, nor did she know where she was. Unfortunately, Miroku COULD sense the shard and DID know where they were, and so she had to place her trust completely in him for now. She hated having to do that.

            "_It's not that I dislike Houshi-sama. He's annoying, but I don't dislike him all that much. It's just that I hate having to put all of my trust in someone else. It leaves me feeling helpless,_" she thought. She looked up at the monk walking a few steps in front of her. He seemed to be thinking about something, too. Probably his next act of lechery. 

            "_It doesn't help me at all that I'm stuck following a perverted lecherous monk,_" she continued. Kirara's ears twitched, and the cat-like demon suddenly jumped off of her shoulder, taking up a battle stance, and looking into the woods, growling. 

            "Kirara?" Sango asked, stopping. Miroku too stopped, and took up a battle stance.

            "Can you feel that?" he asked. 

            "Feel what?" she questioned, but suddenly was hit with the overwhelming sense that they were being watched. "Never mind," she quickly replied, un-shouldering her massively huge boomerang. The trio tensed, as the bushes nearby began to shake ominously...

            "IRON REAPER SOUL STEALER!!!" the evil scorpion demon that the dog demon had faced off against fell to the ground in several pieces. Kagome ran up, and quickly scooped up the shard of the Shikon no Tama that had been buried in it's tail. 

            "Phew," Shippo said, as the remnants of the scorpion demon dissentigrated into thin air. 

            "I wonder how Sango and Miroku are doing?" Kagome asked.

            "I hope their fight is as easy as this one was," Inuyasha replied.

            "Snake demons. Wonderful. That's _just_ what we need," Sango said, backing up a step. 

            "Just stay behind me, Sango. I've got this," Miroku said, also backing up a step. They were now back to back. 

            "Right," Sango said. A few snake demons, with red glowing eyes might I add, slithered up toward Sango. 

            "Wind Tunnel!!" Miroku exclaimed, opening his air void, as Sango pulled her stupidly huge boomerang off of her back and threw it into the fray of snakes, knocking a good half of them unconscious. Miroku closed his air void, and turned to face the snake demons Sango has just attacked. In the next instant, the demons were gone, leaving wind-swept grass in their wake. 

            "Well...that wasn't _too_ hard," Miroku commented, as Sango re-positioned her boomerang on her back.

            "Nope," she replied. Miroku started to say something, but before he could, the ground began to shake violenty.

            "What the?!" Sango exclaimed. The ground below her rose up, and sent her hurtling into the air.

            "Sango!!" Miroku exclaimed. He was forced to jump aside, as a huge, serpentile head came crashing down toward him. The ground seemed to explode away from the monster, as it reared back up and roared fiercely. The monk took up a battle stance, and loosened the prayer beads around his hand. Kirara, in her demon form, landed next to him, with Sango on her(?) back. The huge snake demon roared at them, and opened it's mouth, lunging toward the three.

            "Wind--" Miroku started. The monster suddenly stopped, shrieking in pain. Sango's boomerang sliced cleanly through the beast, and returned to Sango's hands. 

            "I didn't even see you throw your boomerang," Miroku said, shocked. Sango looked smug...but frowned, as a wave of sticky red liquid splashed onto her, Miroku and Kirara. She had failed to see that the beast's body would fall right next to where they were...and consequently splash them with a river of blood.

            "Yeeeeew!!!" Miroku exclaimed, spitting blood out of his mouth fervently. Kirara looked fairly pissed off. Sango just glared at the body of the snake demon, and cursed her luck to one of the seven hells. Something that she had learned from Inuyasha, apparently. 

            _"I wonder if Sango and Miroku are doing okay?_" Kagome pondered. Then she shrugged. 

            "They can take care of themselves. What am I worrying about _them_ for?" she replied, to herself. She shrugged again, and sat down next to her pack, bringing out the various things that she needed in order to cook...ramen! Inuyasha's favorite food, and the best way to eat while traveling around...say, looking for Shikon Shards... Shippo bounded up to her, carrying an armful of twigs. He dumped them into a circle of rocks nearby.

            "So, what are you making for dinner? Huh?!?!?" asked the hyper Shippo.

            "Maybe it was a _bad_ idea to give you that chocolate bar," Kagome replied. Shippo looked confused.

            "Yup," replied another voice. Inuyasha stepped out from the bushes nearby, carrying a huge armful of firewood. He dropped the wood in a disorderly heap near the circle of rocks that would be their fire. He then plopped down next to Kagome, looking exhausted. She smiled.

            "Fighting demons is a piece of cake, but chopping firewood tires you out?" she asked, playfully. 

            "Caaaaaaaaaake!!!" Shippo said, in a zombie-like state. 

            "Ha ha," he said, smiling slightly. Kagome then turned to her pile of stuff, and handed Shippo a tea kettle.

            "Could you go fill this up with water?" she asked. Shippo took the kettle, nodding WAY too many times, and bounced off. Inuyasha sighed, and stood up.

            "Something tells me that he'll spill all of it before he gets back to camp," the half-youkai said, and took off after the kitsune. Kagome turned back around, and began to start the fire. It was a good thing that she had brought some matches, otherwise she would have _never_ been able to start the thing...

            "You say there's a hotspring nearby?" Miroku asked. 

            "Uh huh," replied the old man, holding his nose. 

            "You'd _better_ not be lying," Sango replied, her voice venomous. She was fairly pissed off. Who wouldn't be, having walked all night covered in blood?

            "No no, I'm not!!" the old man exclaimed, looking scared.

            "Good," Miroku replied, and walked in the direction the old man had pointed them. Sango shot an evil glare at the old man, then she and Kirara began to follow after Miroku. 

            "Ah!! I'mSTUFFED!!" Shippo exclaimed, falling backwards, rubbing his stomach. 

            "Yeah, dinner was good," Inuyasha complimented, setting his bowl and chopsticks down on the ground in front of him. Kagome looked at him, a bit shocked.

            "Are you all right, Inuyasha?" she asked. He looked at her, cluelessly.

            "Huh?" he asked.

            "Well, you _never_ compliment me about my 'cooking'," she pointed out. _"If you can call heating water and dumping noodles and flavoring into it cooking..._" Shippo smiled.

            "I think he feels safer saying nice things without Miroku and Sango listening," Shippo said. Inuyasha glared at him.

            "No, I just really liked this flavor!!!" Inuyasha practically shouted in denial. Kagome snickered. 

            "There are only three flavors, Inuyasha," she replied. Inuyasha stopped in mid-motion, his hand inches from Shippo's head. Shippo snickered, and jumped up, turning into his bubble form.

            "Oh, thank you SO much for ridding us of the dark cloud over our hotsprings!!" exclaimed a bubbly woman with slightly purple hair.

            "All in a days work, m'lady," Miroku replied. 

            "As a token of our appreciation, how about a courtesy stay in the hotsprings for you and your companion?" the woman asked.

            "Companion_s_," Sango corrected her, gesturing to Kirara. Miroku cleared his throat.

            "That would be great! My companion**_s_** and I have been out fighting demons all day, and, as you can see, we're a bit dirty," Miroku replied, trying to sound as professional as possible.

            "A bit?" Sango asked. Miroku sweatdropped.

            "Of course, of course! This way to the hotsprings...I assume that you would like separate pools," the woman said, turning and walking toward a door. 

            "No, actually, we would like to share--" Miroku started, but was cut off by Sango thwapping him in the head with her boomerang.

            "Separate, please," Sango requested. 

            "and then the boy pulled out a cough drop, threw it at the coffin, and the coffin stopped," Kagome said, in a semi-scary voice. Inuyasha chuckled a little, and Shippo looked puzzled.

            "I don't get it," he said.

            "Ummm...yeah, I forgot you don't have cough drops in this era," she said. She then explained to Shippo about how cough drops help people to get over coughs when they are sick, and that the words 'coffin' and 'coughin' sound exactly alike. Only after that did Shippo laugh, finally getting the joke. 

            "Your turn, Inuyasha," Kagome said, passing her flashlight to him.

            "Huh?" he asked.

            "Your turn to tell a ghost story," Kagome replied. He raised an eyebrow, and handed the flashlight back to her.

            "I don't tell ghost stories, thank you," he replied. 

            "Aww, come on! Just one?" she pleaded. He sighed, and held out his clawed hand, defeated.

            "Okay, just one," he said, glaring a little at her.

            Sango sighed in relief, as she sank down into the warm water of the hotspring, finally getting some of the blood off of her. Her clothes were soaking at the shallow side of the pool, as was Kirara. She dunked her head underwater, and when she resurfaced, she found herself staring into the red glowing eyes of a snake demon. She shrieked in suprize, and decked the thing, making a mad swim toward her boomerang on the other side of the pool of water. She felt two sharp fangs sink into her ankle, and she kicked her leg, dislodging the snake from her foot. With a burst of power, she made it to her boomerang, threw it, and cut the snake demon in half. She caught her boomerang, and hauled herself out of the water, tending to her ankle.

            "Oh my goodness! Are you all right?" exclaimed the woman from earlier, as she ran up. Sango grabbed a random article of clothing from the water immediately and used it to cover herself up.

            "I'm fine," she said, examining the snake bite and coming to the conclusion that the poison had washed out underwater. 

            "You won't be for long!" the woman exclaimed, in much deadlier tone.

            "Wha?" Sango asked, and felt two long fangs sink into her neck a second later. 

            "A...agh..." Sango said, as the former-woman-now-snake-demon removed it's/her fangs from Sango's neck. Sango crumpled like a rag doll, falling to the ground a few seconds later. Her vision blurred, and she began to feel cold. Her energy was draining fast...

            "Mrowr!!" she heard the ferocious roar of Kirara in her(?) demon form.

            "Bad kitty!!" she heard the snake demon say. She heard the sounds of combat, and then a splash. She could just barely make out a yellowish-white cat splashing frantically in the water nearby.

            _"Kirara!!"_ she thought. She summoned her last bit of strength, and shouted "HOUSHI!!!" 

            "Come on, one more story, please?!" Shippo pleaded. Inuyasha growled in protest.

            "That was my _sixteenth _one!!" he exclaimed.

            "Yeah, I think it's time to call it a night anyway," Kagome said, yawning. She climbed into her sleeping bag, yawning again, and Shippo bounded over, curling up next to her.

            "Good night, Inuyasha," she said, as she heard Inuyasha jump into a nearby tree.

            "Good night, Kagome," he replied.

            "G'night guys," said a sleepy Shippo. 

            Miroku held his mandala out, and slashed viciously at yet another snake demon.

            _"Where are these things **coming**__from?!_" He sliced through another, and slowly made his way to the edge of the hotspring. Unfortunately, he realized, his clothes were on the other side. Slapping himself in the head (and beheading another snake), he prepared to jump back into the water.

            "HOUSHI!!!" he heard Sango yell. 

            "Sango!" he exclaimed. He suddenly turned very serious, slicing his mandala through the air and beheading and/or knocking a barrage of snake demons away from him. He took off in a mad dash toward Sango's hotspring ("conveniently" forgetting his clothes). 

            "Sango?!" he shouted, apon entering the room that her hotspring was in. He immediately was aware of Kirara splashing and sputtering in the water nearby. He jumped in, swimming up to the cat demon and dragging it to the shore.

            "Are you all right, Kirara?" the monk asked. Kirara coughed and spat water up, and pointed fervently in the direction of Sango. Miroku was instantly to his feet and running toward the demon exterminator.

            "Sango!!" he shouted.

            "Not so fasssst!!" the woman-turned-snake-demon exclaimed, leaping at him. This new demon was LOTS bigger than the other snake demons. Which would have been a problem...had Miroku not jumped out of the way and released his...

            "Wind Tunnel!!"  the snake demon was instantly sucked into his right hand, and he cut off the flow of wind before anything, like, say, Kirara was sucked into the void. He turned around, and was instantly crouched next to Sango.

            "Sango! Sango! Are you okay? Can you hear me? Say something?" he asked, as he moved her to a sitting position (trying not to think about the fact that she was completely naked). He shook her. "Sango! Hey, wake up!" She was limp in his arms. 

            "What's wrong with you?" he asked, then noticed the fang marks on her neck. His eyes widened in realization.     

            "SHIT!!"

            Kagome couldn't sleep. Something was bothering her, but she couldn't figure out what. Shippo slept peacefully next to her, probably dreaming about candy. She sighed, and looked up at the stars...and the tree limbs...and the leaves...and the Inuyasha descending toward her...eh?! She sat up, as he landed next to her.

            "So, you're still awake?" he asked, in a whisper. She nodded.

            "Yeah,"

            "Why?"

            She shrugged. "I seriously don't know. I just have this nagging feeling that something bad is happening, or has happened, or is going to happen," she thought. 

           "Oh, is that it? I thought there was seriously something wrong with you," Inuyasha said. With that, he jumped back up to his perch in the tree above. She smiled slightly, and laid back down in her sleeping bag.

            _"He was worried about me,_" she thought.

            "Hold on Sango! Don't die on me!" Miroku exclaimed, picking her up in his arms, and starting toward the pool of water. _"I've got to wash the poison out, or she's dead!_" He held her so that her head was above water and her neck wasn't, and with one hand began to swirl the water near her neck.

            "Mrowr?" Kirara asked, from the bank.

            "Don't worry, Kirara, I'm not doing anything lecherous," he replied. "_For once_," There was suddenly a loud crash, and Miroku turned, seeing ten or so snake demons crash through one of the wooden walls of the room. He held Sango closer to him, protectively.         

            "This is not good," he said. Sango suddenly began to cough, and he looked down at her in suprize.

            Sango opened her eyes, and tried to bring her eyes into focus. She couldn't tell for sure, but she was pretty sure that a guy's bare chest was in front of her, and hey...waitaminute!! 

            "Houshi...sama?" she asked, weakly. Miroku looked down at her.

            "You're awake?" he asked, astonished. She was suddenly aware of an arm around her, and combat noises behind her.

            "What's going on?" she asked.

            "You were bitten by a snake demon. And, this isn't good news, there are about ten more of the nasty things at the edge of the pool. Kirara is fighting them right now, but her dive into the water earlier has really weakened her," Miroku explained.

            "So why aren't you HELPING her?!" Sango shouted, then went into a coughing spasm and  began to sink further into the water. Only Miroku's arm around her kept her afloat now.

            "I had to wash the poison out of your neck," he explained. There was a loud crash, and a yelping sound came from Kirara, who was flung to the ground at the edge of the pool.

            "Kirara!" Sango exclaimed, turning around, only to have Miroku pull her back toward him.

            "What are you doing?" she demanded.

            "You don't have much energy left now. You wouldn't stand a chance, boomerang or not," Miroku replied. 

            "So what are we going to do?" she asked. Miroku narrowed his eyes.

            "When they get into the right place, I'll suck them up into my Wind Tunnel," he replied. Sango nodded. 

            "Right, I'll get behind you then," she said, and moved to swim around behind him. As soon as he let go of her, she fell underwater, and despite her struggle to swim, only his arm around her again saved her from drowning. 

            "Hold me tight, Sango," he said, loosening his prayer beads. She realized that she didn't have a choice, so she wrapped her arms around his shoulders weakly.

            "Wind Tunnel!" Miroku exclaimed. The force of the wind caused Sango to cling to Miroku for dear life, to avoid being sucked into the wind. Without realizing it, she had also wrapped her legs around him. The winds finally stopped, and she released her death-grip on the monk, allowing him to catch her again as she sank into the water. There was a profoundly red blush on his cheeks, and he scratched the back of his head with the other hand, laughing nervously. She managed to gather up enough strength to slap him with one hand.

            "I...guess I deserved that," he said. She suddenly felt guilty. To her knowledge, he hadn't done anything too lecherous. Intentionally, anyway.

            "No, you didn't. Thanks for saving me," she said, weakly. He looked at  her, in shock.

            "Y-you're welcome," he managed to reply. They just sat (or, more precisely, floated) there for a few awkward minutes. Sango suddenly began to shiver.

            "You ok?" he asked.

            "Yeah, it's just a bit cold in here," she replied. He narrowed his eyes. The water they were in was no where near cold. Wordlessly, he bent his head toward her, homing in her neck where the snake bite was.

            "HEY!!" Sango exclaimed, bringing a hand up to slap him. He caught it, and then the other hand, and proceeded, still silent. She blushed slightly, and glared at him, trying to kick him but not having the strength to bring her leg up to him. He placed his mouth over the bite, and carefully tested each of the fang marks with his tongue. He pulled his face away from her neck, a serious expression on his face.

            "Just as I thought. There is still some poison in the bite," he said. She blinked.

            "Poison?" she asked. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and forced her farther underwater, so that the poison would wash out. Just as before, he swirled the water near her neck.

            "Hou..." she started. He looked down at her. "...Miroku," she said, kind of nodding. He smiled, but didn't say anything. She looked up into his eyes, sincere, no glint of mischievousness in them. She smiled back at him, something that she rarely did, unless it was at his expense. They just looked at eachother for a few more moments, then they began to tilt their heads toward eachother, Miroku lowering his head toward her's. At first, the kiss was soft, delicate, and caring, but it soon turned into a heated, passionate kiss, as Sango rose up in the water so that the two were level with eachother. They were both blushing when they broke the kiss, Miroku moreso because of how close they now were. 

            "Sango..." Miroku said. She looked up at him, quizzically. "Feel free to slap me any time," he said. She arched an eyebrow, confused. She understood what he meant, though, when he dipped his head toward her and started kissing her neck. She gasped, in suprise. Before, when he had tasted the snake bite for poison, she had felt nothing from his mouth. But now, there was passion in him, and every kiss sent shockwaves of pleasure through her body. He began to kiss her shoulders, and then lower, toward her breasts. Sango realised this, but, strangely, she didn't mind. He cautiously kissed once on one of her breasts, and, when she didn't respond, placed his mouth over almost the entire thing. She gasped, and moaned as he began to lick and suck at her breast. She arched her back toward him, and he moved to the other breast, smiling. When he was finished there, he moved back up to her mouth, and gave her another deep, loving kiss. He slipped an arm around her, and began to swim back toward the edge of the hot spring, taking her with him. When they had reached the edge, he made a move to lift her up onto the shelf. She stopped him, drawing him into another kiss.

            There was something strange but powerful coursing through Sango's blood. She felt herself heat up, as Miroku slowly entered her mouth with his tongue. She was a tumult of emotions, but the dominating emotion was definetely desire. That decided, a wicked smile played across her lips, and she wrapped her legs loosely around his legs, rubbing her womanhood against his manhood. She felt him pull away from the kiss and gasp, going hard under her. He looked at her in shock, and she just gave him a wicked smile. His eyes narrowed, and his face turned serious.

            "Sango, are you sure you want to do this?" he asked. 

            "Yes," she replied. He took a deep breath, and kissed her, moving her onto the shelf and moving himself on top of her. He let her grab his shoulders, and placed a small kiss on her lips. With that, he pushed his hard cock into her, making her gasp. He paused, letting her adjust to him, and then began to pump in and out of her. At first, he was slow and deliberate, but he lost control of himself the more he continued, and his thrusts became faster and harder each time. Sango moaned in pleasure under him, gripping his shoulders progressively harder. He started to ram her full force, and after a few pumps, she climaxed, her body going taut and the pressure escalating on his cock. He released into her a few seconds later, pulling out of her almost immediately and panting hard for breath. She released her grip on his shoulders (Miroku was sure she had left a  permanent mark), and let her body go limp, panting hard for breath. The monk laboriously sat up, sitting on the far edge of the shelf, his legs dangling into the water.

            _"What have you _done_ Miroku?!"_ he mentally screamed. Sango sat up, and looked at him. Concern instantly swept over her.

            "_She gave you the ultimate pleasure, and now she will endure the ultimate pain. Why Sango? Why did it have to be you? The woman that I care about the most. The woman that I cared about so much that I vowed never to hurt her, even if that meant that I had no son. And now, what have I done? I've broken my vow,_" Miroku thought. 

            "Miroku?" Sango asked. He jumped, and turned to her, guilt apparent in his eyes. She was kind of taken aback. "Miroku...don't think that this changes anything between us. In the morning, I'll go back to being my old Sango self, and you will go back to being your Houshi self. Okay?" she told him. He nodded, looking relieved. "And...supposing that I _am_ pregnant...I will carry the child, and I will bear it, it is as much my responsibility as yours. So don't beat yourself up about it, okay?" Sango continued. Miroku looked relieved.

            "Thank you, Sango. I'm sorry," he said. She sat down next to him, leaning against him, as he put his arms around her. He smiled, but began to shiver. He stood up abruptly, and took off toward the hotspring his clothes were at.

            "I'm gonna go get my clothes. Be back in a flash!" he exclaimed, shivering, and darted around the corner. Sango sighed, but stood up to fetch her clothes as well. A part of her wanted things between them to change, but she knew that would only complicate things. It was best to go back to the way they were before. She sighed again.

            "_Maybe after Naraku is dead and the Shikon no Tama is whole, it will be safe for things to change between us."_ she thought, as she pulled her civilian clothes on. Kirara came to sit next to her, the cat demon looking up at her quizzically. 

            "Snake demons?" Kagome asked.

            "Yes. They attacked us in a huge group. That's why we weren't able to get the shard. Sorry," Sango apologized. There were a few seconds of silence.

            "No need to apologize," Inuyasha replied. 

            "HUH?!" the three humans and one kitsune exclaimed, looking at him with startled expressions on their faces. 

            "D-did you just say that there was no need for her to apologize?" Miroku asked. Inuyasha nodded, gravely. Miroku and Sango paled a little, sweatdrops of nervousness appearing on their heads. 

            "There is something different about you two. I can sense it," Inuyasha accused. They paled even further. 

            "W-what are you talking about?" they asked. 

            "Yeah, what _are_ you talking about?" Shippo asked.

            "Wait, I think I know," Kagome piped up.

            "Huh?" Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango demanded, the latter two paling EVEN further (if that was even possible). Kagome pointed to Sango's neck.

            "You got bitten by one of the snake demons," Kagome replied. Miroku and Sango seemed to sigh with relief, and Inuyasha blinked. Suddenly, everything clicked. 

            "AHA!! I know what's different about you two!!" he exclaimed, pointing at them. They looked incredibly uncomfortable. Inuyasha grinned evilly.

            "Inuyasha," Miroku started. An evil glint appeared in Inuyasha's golden eyes.

            "Snake demons, _especially_ snake demons from around _here_ have..._special_ venom," the dog-demon started. Shippo looked at him quizzically. Kagome arched an eyebrow in suspicion. Miroku and Sango gulped, petrified. "...supposedly, to those that _survive_ being bitten, anyway, the venom acts as an _aphrodesiac_," he said, drawing out the last word slowly. Everyone was silent for a few seconds.

            "SIT!!!" Kagome shouted. Inuyasha was thrown to the ground with a loud THWOCK!!! He instantly sprang back up, looking murderous.

            "What was THAT for?!" he demanded. 

            "You shouldn't be talking like that in front of Shippo!!" Kagome scolded.

            "But it's _true_!" Inuyasha demanded. 

            "That's absurd!! And even if it WAS true, Sango would never let something like that happen!" Kagome screamed/replied.

            "Don't be so sure about that," Inuyasha said, pointing in the direction of Miroku and Sango. Who were now blushing profoundly. Kagome gawked at them in suprize.

            "You didn't!" she exclaimed. Sango and Miroku gulped, Miroku laughing nervously. 

            "Perhaps it was a _bad_ idea to split up," Kagome said, a few minutes later.

            "No, you think?!" Inuyasha exclaimed, sarcasm so thick in his voice that you could cut it with the Tetsusaiga. She turned and glared at him.

            "You'd just better be glad that we chose to go _North_! That could have been _us_, you know!!" she exclaimed. 

            "Right. Like you'd actually--" Inuyasha started.

            "Aphrodesiacs do weird things to the mind, Inuyasha," Sango said. He folded his arms.

            "Well, I guess we'd _both_ have to get bitten by the snakes, because in my right state of mind I wouldn't go _near _her!!" the half-youkai replied. 

            "Hmph! You want me and you _know_ it!!" Kagome exclaimed. This silenced Inuyasha, making him blush and mutter curses under his breath.


	2. Love, Jealousy and Betrayal

**Love, Jealousy and Betrayal**

**aka Snake Venom Chapter 2**

**By ArtikGato**

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. This saddens me. I will go cry now. ;_;

Author's Notes: Here it is!! The chapter you've all been waiting for! This was originally another story on ff.net, but no one reviewed, so it's now chapter 2 of Snake Venom! There are at least two more chapters to this story. On that note, I have a vague idea for the next chapter. No lemon planned...the key word is planned... But review anyway! Okay, I'm through rambling. No lemon in this chapter or the next. Okey dokey, that's all. Oh, one more thing. Domou arigato to those of you who reviewed the first chapter! If you peoples hadn't requested a second chapter (you know who you are...), then I would NEVER have considered writing this. ^__^ With that said, on with Love, Jealousy and Betrayal!

"You say there's a hotspring nearby?" Kagome asked. The elderly woman they had been talking to nodded, and pointed them in one direction. The miko smiled and clapped her hands together. "Perfect! I don't think I could last another day without a bath!" she said, as she and her friends set off to find a suitable campsite. Unknown to them, Miroku and Sango exchanged a glance and knowing little grins. 

"Kagome, I think it's only fair that you get to take a bath first, because of that whole, erm, mud incident," Sango said. Kagome glared at Inuyasha, who folded his arms and turned away from her. 

"It was either I push you into the mud or you die a horrible and painful death!!" he shouted. A pack of nasty looking Bear Demons had attacked them earlier that day, and Kagome had bravely tried to shoot them down with her bow and arrows. Unfortunately, the arrows barely even tickled the Kumo Youkai. They had still tried to attack her, and Inuyasha had been forced to shove her into a big puddle of mud in order to keep her from being clawed to death. "I think you should be _thanking_ me, anyway! Would you rather have mud on you or be clawed to death?!" he demanded. 

"You didn't have to push me in FACE FIRST!!!" she snapped back at him. 

"Touchy today, aren't we Kagome?!" he fired back. 

"You'd be touchy too if YOU were shoved HEAD FIRST into a PILE OF MUD!!" she shrieked at him. Sango interrupted them, abruptly putting her Hiraikotsu between them in a threatening manner. 

"It doesn't matter who did what! Just drop it!" the demon exterminator exclaimed. The hanyou and the miko turned away from eachother, arms folded, with two 'humph' s. 

"Kagome, you go and get your bath done and over with, and we'll set up camp," Miroku said.

"We will?" Shippo asked. 

Kagome made her way to their camp about forty-five minutes later, fluffy light blue towel wrapped around her hair and a new set of clothes on. 

"The hotspring's all yours, Sango," Kagome said. The Demon Exterminator eagerly took off in the direction Kagome had just come from. The miko sighed, and sat down on her sleeping bag, which was near the newly made fire. After a few moments of silence, Miroku jumped up, grabbing his mandala from where he had rested it against a tree.

"I'm going for a WALK!" he exclaimed, too enthusiastically, and took off through the trees. Kagome and Inuyasha both sighed, in unison. They knew what 'taking a walk' meant. Shippo groaned, apparently he knew what 'taking a walk' meant, as well.

_"Almost a month has passed since they were attacked by the snake demons. Or at least, since we learned that they were attacked by them,_" Kagome mused. She laughed, slightly. _"At first we were all sure that the snake venom had caused them to , uh, do what they did, but since then that theory has been disproven. MANY times." _

_"Feh.__ Every time we camp somewhere with a hotspring nearby, they both leave, and come back an hour later, grinning like morons, and all lovey-dovey. Yeesh! You think they'd learn to at least _try_ to hide it! Eugh. Those two are entirely TOO happy, in my opinion_," Inuyasha thought, scowling at the tree stump in front of him. 

"Hey, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked him. He didn't look up at her.

"What?" he asked, kind of annoyed. 

"What's YOUR problem?!" she demanded, also annoyed. 

"Oh no you don't! Don't start fighting!" Shippo exclaimed, quickly darting in between them and transforming into a big red heart with eyes and a fox tail. "Can't we all just love eachother?" Shippo asked. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at him, and Kagome laughed. 

"You look ridiculous!" she exclaimed, and Shippo turned back to his old Shippo self, laughing with her. Inuyasha just shook his head, sitting down, with a slight smile on his face. Seeing Kagome laugh always made him do that. 

"So, hey, what were you scowling about earlier?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha was about to reply, when he heard something off to their right. His ear twitched, and he picked up the sound of rapid footsteps, getting louder and more rapid the closer they came. He turned to the direction the noise was coming in, just in time to dodge a blurry form. The blurry speeding form flew right over his head and into a tree. Kagome blinked and turned to look at the new arrival. He looked suspiciously familiar... The guy suddenly jumped up, and in an instant was kneeling before a surprised Kagome, clasping her hands in both of his. 

"Kagome! It is great to see you!" Kouga exclaimed. 

"Oh...hi Kouga," she said, unenthusiastically. Kouga didn't notice the monotone to her voice, and just sighed contentedly, 

"Long time no see, wolf!" Inuyasha exclaimed, Tetsusaiga drawn and ready to slice the Wolf Demon in half. Kouga just shook his head, and stood up, preparing for battle.

"You never learn, do you hanyou?" Kouga replied. The two lunged for eachother, but Kagome jumped between them, stopping the fight.

"Children! Geesh! You demons are all just children! Look at you two fighting! What's the point? You aren't enemies!" Kagome started.

"Wanna bet?!" Inuyasha interjected, getting into a battle stance, the Tetsusaiga gleaming as he held it in front of him. Kouga got into a battle stance as well.

"Kagome, don't tell me that you care for this half-breed loser!" Kouga exclaimed.

"Of course I do! He's my _friend_!" she replied. 

"So, do you care for _me_ the same way, or are you protecting _him_?" Kouga asked, confused. 

"Yes, I care about you the _same way_ because you are my friend too!" she replied. Inuyasha looked a little peeved at this. He had saved her COUNTLESS times from evil demons that wanted to kill her, and Kouga had KIDNAPPED her, and she still cared about them _equally_? How was _that_ fair? 

He hadn't realized that he had said that out loud. Kagome stared at him, more than a little surprised. Kouga grinned wickedly. 

"Jealous, Inuyasha?" the wolf demon asked. The hanyou narrowed his eyes.

"Yeah right," Inuyasha spat out. The two glared at eachother around Kagome. 

"Hey!" she protested, wheeling around and glaring at Kouga. Kouga blinked, surprised. He suddenly turned angry, glaring back at her. It was her turn to look surprised.

"Kouga?" she asked. 

"Kagome, it is time you stop toying with my fragile heart!" Kouga exclaimed. 

"Eh?" Inuyasha and Kagome asked, baffled. Kouga pointed at the dog-demon behind her.

"It's time to end this feud! Who do you _really_ love, Kagome, me or him?!" Kouga demanded. She was completely caught off guard about this.

"Wha?!" she demanded. 

"I know it will be hard for you to hurt poor Inuyasha, Kagome, but you must! You must tell me once and for all that you love me!" the wolf demon continued.

"He's obviously delusional," Inuyasha muttered. Kagome laughed a little, nervously. Kouga looked up at her with tears in his eyes, and she arched an eyebrow.

"Please tell us who you love so this ridiculous fight can be settled! If you love me, I will make you a queen of demons! All of Japan will bow before your feet!!" Kouga started.

"Yeah right," Inuyasha muttered. 

"...but, if you truly love this half-breed mongrel, then that is your choice," he said, and appeared to be crying at the thought. Kagome just stood there, an absolutely confused expression on her face. "Decide now, Kagome!" 

Kagome was like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. She just stood stone still, not knowing what she was supposed to do. Her problem wasn't with the ultimate answer to the question. She knew-she had always known deep down-that she loved Inuyasha. The problem was that she wasn't sure she wanted _him_ to know just yet. She was afraid that he would just reject her. She could almost hear his response, ringing in her ears, filling her soul with anguish. '_Feh__.__ Just another weak human girl in love with me. You humans are all alike. You think that I could ever love you? The only human I ever loved was Kikyo. And you are not her,_' Kagome could feel tears welling up into her eyes. She stood still with her back to the hanyou, unmoving. She felt...betrayed. 

'_But Inuyasha can't possibly be _that_ heartless, can he? No, I've seen a side of him that shows his true feelings. He would never say that_,' a voice in her head told her. Was it her heart? Or her conscience? She didn't know.

'_But I can't tell him! I _can't_! What if he really...what if...I...I don't want to be..._' she replied to the voice. The voice seemed to scoff at her. 

'_Ha! If you take _that_ attitude toward love then you don't deserve him! At least that damned wretch Kikyo told him!_' 

Kagome was silent. 

'_Love requires taking risks! Even if he doesn't love you in return in the end, it would be better to just tell him and get it over with! That way you won't have to live with the 'what ifs' down the road!_'' the voice exclaimed. Kagome nodded, and gulped a little, willing away the unshed tears from her eyes. She turned slowly to face Inuyasha.

He blinked at the look in her eyes. Fear. She was afraid. But why?

'_Maybe she's just afraid to tell me...'_ he shook his head mentally. '_No, she shouldn't be! She told me that she would follow me wherever I went, to the ends of the Earth if need be. Isn't that the same?'_ he thought. Then a thought dawned on him. Maybe she _was_ afraid to tell him what she was going to tell him, but not because she was afraid he would reject her...because she was afraid of how angry he would be if she really _did_ love that mangy wolf youkai. His eyes narrowed. It could be either one...but he was more inclined to believe the second choice. After all, if she had admitted that she wanted to be with him, that she _had_ to be with him, then surely she could admit that she loved him.   
  


Of course, Inuyasha didn't understand the psyche of a teenage schoolgirl from the 21st century.

"Inuyasha...I..." Kagome started, slowly and uneasily. Inuyasha glared at her, and turned around, running off into the forest.

"I don't need to hear this," he said, angrily, and in an instant he was gone. 

"Inuyasha!!!" she called after him, shocked. Behind her, Kouga chuckled. She whirled around on him.

"What are _you_ laughing at?!" she demanded, fury in her eyes. Kouga looked confused.

"Huh?" he asked. She glared at him, and took a step closer toward him.

"What's so funny?!" she exclaimed. 

"But...but I...I thought...didn't you just choose _me_?!" he asked, confused. 

"Why would you think _that_?!"

"Because he just ran away!" Kouga shouted. She stopped, shocked. 

'_That's why he ran away..._' she thought. '_Of course!__ That wasn't scorn in his eyes, it was sorrow! He thought I really _had_ chosen Kouga!_' Kouga laughed at her shocked expression, and made a move to put a hand on her shoulder. She smacked it away roughly and glared at him with a murderous look of rage in her eyes.

"For your _information_, I was going to tell him that I love _him_, not you," she said, a deadly tone to her usual calm and cheerful voice. He looked shocked at first, then sad. She was about to turn and walk away, when he stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"That is your decision. I cannot change that. Just...be happy," the wolf demon said. She smiled a little bittersweetly. 

"Good-bye, Kouga," she said, giving a friendly kiss on the cheek. He looked at her remorsefully one more time, as if she might change her mind any minute. Then, he was gone, disappearing as swift as the wind. 

Inuyasha wouldn't go back. Couldn't go back. He heard her frantic cry for him to come back, but he didn't stop. He just...ran. 

"I saw what happened," said an oddly familiar masculine voice. He stopped dead in his tracks, and turned to face the speaker. Long, white hair, a red and white kimono, and a huge fluffy tail. It was Sesshomaru. 

"Sesshomaru...what a pleasant surprise," he said, unenthusiastically. He was expecting Sesshomaru to smirk at him and talk some nonsense trash at him, but instead he looked at him... in an almost apologetic way. Inuyasha blinked, and looked at his brother again. He wasn't seeing things. Sesshomaru was looking at him with a look of sympathy.

'_Whoa...either I've walked through a FEW too many of those weird smelling plants or I'm in an alternate dimension..._' 

"Don't look so shocked, little brother. It doesn't suit you," Sesshomaru said, his trademark smirk gracing his face. Inuyasha was about to reply with some smart-ass comment, but Sesshomaru stopped him.

"I saw what happened back at your campsite. I was going to attack you and try once more to take back the Tetsusaiga...but I decided that it's not fair to attack you when you're distracted. I want to kill you when you are fighting at top shape," Sesshomaru said, smirking wider. 

"Gre-eat," Inuyasha replied, sarcastically, "Well what do you think I should _do_ about it, smarty-pants?" the hanyou asked, again sarcastically. 

"Go back and tell her how _you_ feel, dimwit!" Sesshomaru exclaimed.

"What good will _that_ do?!" Inuyasha demanded. 

"I've seen the way she looks at you. If she loves that weak wolf-demon instead of you, then there is something seriously _wrong_ with her," Sesshomaru replied. Inuyasha blinked.

"That's...a good point," Inuyasha replied. Silence. Inuyasha shook his head, not actually believing what he was about to say. "Thanks, Sesshomaru," Then the half dog-demon was gone in a flash. Sesshomaru blinked in disbelief.

"What in the name of all things holy _happened_ to me to make me give him _advice_?" Sesshomaru asked. Then he shrugged, walking off into the forest muttering about evil blue plants that smell funny.

Kagome, Shippo, and the grinning Miroku and Sango were sitting around the fire. Shippo had turned into an assortment of animals and other things to try to cheer Kagome up. Miroku and Sango weren't helping matters much, them being sickeningly lovey-dovey all of the time. Shippo's ears suddenly twitched, and he turned back into his normal self, looking at the bushes to their right. Night had fallen about thirty minutes ago, and Inuyasha _still_ wasn't back. They were getting kind of worried about him...but they were _more_ worried about all of the demons in this area that might decide that they were a good snack. And, even between the four of them, they were pretty sure that they couldn't fight _all_ of the forest demons. 

"Who's there?" Kagome called, as Sango readied her Hiraikotsu and Miroku loosened the prayer beads on his gloved hand. Much to their relief, Inuyasha stepped out from the bushes. They all sighed in relief.

"Inuyasha, you scared the bejesus out of us! We thought you were a big nasty demon!" Shippo exclaimed. Inuyasha had a VERY serious expression on his face, and looked down at Kagome, who was looking up at him with a look that was almost remorse. He almost had to bite his lip. It was heart wrenching to see her with such a pained expression on her face. 

"Kagome...we have to talk," he said, walking up to the miko and pulling her to her feet somewhat roughly by a wrist.

"Hey!" she protested, and prepared to yell 'sit', but noted the serious expression on his face. Instead she just nodded, solemnly. They walked a few steps, before he turned around and growled menacingly at the two humans and the fox demon by the campfire.

"Alone," he said, threateningly. 

"Umm...what's say we stay here and guard the campsite, guys?" Miroku asked, nervously. Sango and Shippo nodded fervently. Inuyasha turned back around, and, before Kagome could protest, he had picked her up and jumped up a few hundred feet. Kagome wasn't scared of the height, what with the many times she and Inuyasha had gone 'flying' since they had met. She wasn't particularly scared of him dropping her either. It was the sudden movement which put her a LOT closer to Inuyasha that made her shriek in surprise. 

Naraku sat in a tree, watching the pair sail through the air above him and land a few hundred meters away from him in the forest. He chuckled.

"Pitiful fools," he said, and snapped his fingers. Someone appeared below his tree. The person stood motionless, and he was completely cloaked in shadows save for his unnaturally red glowing eyes. Naraku chuckled malevolently, and threw another shard of the Shikon no Tama down at the person. The Shard imbedded itself in the person's forehead. But, instead of screaming, the person only laughed, as his muscles increased in size, and he grew taller. Naraku laughed diabolically.

"Don't worry...soon you will have your revenge on those two...Kouga," 

The two touched down on the ground underneath a large oak tree. It was spring, so the tree was full of leaves, and the night was just cool enough to be pleasant. Inuyasha set Kagome on her feet in front of him. The two just stood there for a few tense minutes.

"Inuyasha..." Kagome started. Inuyasha silenced her by putting a finger up to her lips. She started to blush at this gesture.

"Kagome, I'm sorry I ran off earlier," he said. When she didn't say anything, he continued, not being able to look her in the eyes. "But I just want for you to know that, no matter whether you love Kouga over me or not, I..." he started. She nearly held her breath in suspense. "...I love you," he finally said, closing his eyes and waiting for the 'sits' to come. She didn't say a word. "I may not always show it, but I do," he said, shakily, finally opening his eyes and looking into hers. He saw that they were shimmering from unshed tears that were threatening to spill. But she didn't look sad, this time. She looked happier than he had ever seen her. _He_ had made her happy. It was the greatest feeling in the world for the hanyou to know that. Kagome jumped up and threw her arms around him happily, and drawing her face precariously close to his. They stayed like that for a few seconds before they were enveloped in a sweet, loving kiss. 

But, their tender moment was over before they had ever wished it to be. 

"DIE HANYOU BASTARD!!" someone shrieked behind them. Inuyasha broke the kiss abruptly and spun around facing the direction of the voice. He was just in time to see his attacker before he was violently blown back into a tree.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaimed. The attacker stood up from the crouch he was in. He turned to look at her.

"Hello, Kagome," he said, with a very sinister tone to his voice.

"K-Kouga?" she asked, stepping back in fear. He had a malevolent look on his face, and his eyes were glowing with a blood red color. 

"In the flesh," he said. 

"What happened to you?" she asked, shocked. He grinned evilly.

"You happened to me," he replied.

"What?" she asked. He snickered.

"How could you choose that pitiful hanyou over me?" he demanded.

"I thought-" Kagome started, but she was interrupted as Inuyasha jumped into the air behind Kouga, Tetsusaiga raised and ready to cut him down.

"I'll show YOU pitiful!!" he yelled, and slashed down at Kouga with the mighty sword. Kouga laughed, and caught it in his hands. Inuyasha was so caught off-guard by shock, that Kouga easily was able to rip the Tetsusaiga from his hands, throwing him into another tree from the momentum. 

"Kouga please stop!" Kagome pleaded. The wolf demon turned to her, and smirked. 

"Just wait your turn. I'm gonna have fun with you once I cut down your little boyfriend," he replied to her, darkly, seeming to laugh at the suggestion. She looked appalled, and then angry.

"The Kouga I know would _never_ do that! You're a fake!" she exclaimed, and slapped him hard across the face, causing him to stumble backwards and drop the Tetsusaiga, which he was still holding." You're Naraku in disguise!" Kouga laughed a little.

"No, but you're close. I'm 100 percent Kouga," he said. She narrowed her eyes, and searched his body for jewel shards. She found two, glowing a malevolent red.

"Naraku is controlling you," it wasn't a question, it was a statement. 

"Master Naraku has shown me the light. With these two Jewel shards, I am ten times more powerful than I was before. And that's more than enough to get back at you and your little dog friend for breaking my heart-no, not breaking it...shattering it!" Kouga explained. 

"I've heard _enough_ of your jabbering!" Inuyasha exclaimed, running up, grabbing the Tetsusaiga, and slashing down at Kouga. The wolf demon jumped into the air, completely avoiding the slash. Inuyasha ran to stand protectively in front of Kagome. 

"Hey, are you all right?" he asked. 

"I'm fine. But Kouga is being controlled by Naraku!" Kagome replied.

"I figured as much," 

"So how do we stop him without seriously hurting him?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha replied. 

"Prepare to die!" Kouga shouted, jumping out of the trees beside Kagome. Inuyasha whirled around, and saw that Kouga had an attack aimed straight at her. Thinking fast, he grabbed her wrists and pulled her toward him. Kouga flew by and skidded to a stop a few feet away. He jumped toward them, intent on killing them. Inuyasha raised the Tetsusaiga over his head

"Don't kill him!" Kagome protested. Thinking fast, Inuyasha turned the sword, and conked the rampaging Kouga on the head with a flat side. Kouga stumbled around drunkenly for a few seconds with @'s in his eyes, and then fell to the ground. 

Just as they let out sighs of relief, they heard someone clapping behind them, Inuyasha whirled around to face the applauder, keeping Kagome behind him protectively.

"Bravo, bravo," said someone. They emerged from the bushes nearby, to reveal themselves as someone tall and dressed in a baboon skin. Naraku. 

"Naraku!" Inuyasha exclaimed. His grip on the Tetsusaiga tightened, and energy flared from it, dancing around it like fire. 

"Oh, hello Inuyasha," Naraku said, almost casually. He looked down at the flaring Tetsusaiga. "I see you still want to kill me," 

"That's an understatement," Inuyasha said, coldly, the Tetsusaiga flaring even brighter. He held the Tetsusaiga up in front of him, and readied himself for battle. Kagome took a step back from the hanyou, and pulled an arrow out of the quiver on her back, getting her bow ready with the other hand. By now it was almost second nature to carry her bow and arrows with her every time she left camp, what with this being the Feudal Era and demons being just as common as people. 

"Let's skip the preliminaries," Naraku suggested.

"Fine by me," Inuyasha replied. 

The two jumped into battle, Inuyasha slashing furiously with the Tetsusaiga and Naraku dodging the slashes almost effortlessly, laughing all the way. This only made Inuyasha even more mad, and made him swing that more wildly. Kagome just stood at the ready, keeping her arrow locked on Naraku, ready at any moment to fire a destructive energy arrow at the demon. 

"Damn you!!" Inuyasha shouted, slashing at Naraku. Naraku just laughed, dodging aside again. This time, however, the sword cut cleanly through the baboon skin he was wearing. He blinked a little, surprised, allowing Inuyasha to get in a good hit at him. But, a good hit was not enough. Naraku jumped backwards, landing on the ground. He discarded the shredded baboon pelt, his red glowing eyes glaring up at Inuyasha. Inuyasha landed, and prepared to jump into another assault. Naraku suddenly jumped, and gathered black energy around him.

"I grow bored of this!" he shouted, and prepared to release a cloud of destruction. He was suddenly struck in the chest by a glowing, pink arrow. The black clouds of energy dissappated, and he fell back down to the ground. growling in fury, he ripped the arrow from his chest, breaking it in half despite it still glowing pink, and jumped to attack the person who had shot it. Kagome. 

"Leave her _out_ of this!" Inuyasha exclaimed, jumping and slashing powerfully with the Tetsusaiga, forcing him to give up attacking her and focus on him. Kagome wordlessly took another arrow from her quiver, and got ready to fire again

'_My first arrow seems to have slowed him down. If I can hit him in the heart, I might be able to bring him down,_' she thought, keeping her arrow locked on it's ultimate target. 

Inuyasha slashed furiously with the Tetsusaiga, and Naraku dodged or blocked every slash, eyes glowing with anger.

'_I will NOT be beaten by a half-breed and a pitiful human girl,_' he thought. Inuyasha tried stabbing with the mighty sword, and Naraku dodged just enough that it stabbed into the air beside his head and above his shoulder. He brought his hand upward and hit the Tetsusaiga with such a force that it was torn from Inuyasha's hands to stab into the ground nearby. Steam came from it as it returned to it's rickety normal state. 

"Oh no!" Inuyasha exclaimed. Naraku moved to give Inuyasha a blow that would most certainly kill the hanyou.

"Sit!" Kagome exclaimed, and fired her arrow with deadly precision. The hanyou plummeted to the ground face first, and Naraku was distracted long enough by this not to notice the arrow before it was too late. Kagome's arrow found it's mark right in the center of Naraku's demon heart. Pink energy crackled around him like lightning, and he screamed in agony. Inuyasha got up rubbing his face in pain, just as Naraku landed in front of him, desperately clawing at the arrow in his heart but not being able to touch it. 

"Inuyasha, while he's distracted!" Kagome shouted, panting. She had put almost all of her energy into that arrow, and now she only had enough left to keep standing up. Inuyasha jumped over to where the Tetsusaiga was stabbed into the ground, grabbed it, and jumped back toward Naraku, powering up the sword in the air. He slashed down at Naraku with it. He never knew what hit him until it was too late.

Naraku's dieing scream was abruptly cut short by his body disintegrating into dark energy. Black energy exploded in waves from the vile demon's body, filling the air with clouds of destruction. The grass and trees nearby wilted and soon disintegrated into nothingness. 

"Shit!" Inuyasha cursed, and ran to where Kagome was. 

"What's going on?" she asked.

"No time to explain!" he exclaimed, scooping her into his arms and jumping away, just as the dark energy hit the tree she was standing in front of, turning it into ashes. As soon as he hit the ground, he took off running, away from the rapidly approaching clouds of blackness.


	3. Love Conquers All

**Love Conquers All**

**Chapter 3**

**By ArtikGato**

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. If I did, then there would be InuKago in EVERY episode!!

Author's Notes: Here we go! Chapter 3! Just so you know, Chapter 1 was 'Snake Venom', and chapter two was 'Love, Jealousy and Betrayal'. This chapter is a continuation of 'Love, Jealousy and Betrayal', (because I think a few of you would murder me if I just stopped where I ended Chapter 2....). It is, of course, Inu x Kago, but there is also a bit of Miro x Sango in here. Oh, and beware of major sappiness! If you don't like happy endings, then don't read. This is how I want the series to end, by the way. Review!! I'm thinking about making the next chapter another lemon. Should I? Anyways, on with the chapter!! And thankees to all who reviewed!!!

Inuyasha sank to his knees, exhausted. The clouds of death had finally dissipated, coinciding with how far Inuyasha could run. He put Kagome down on the ground in front of him, and used his hands for support to keep from falling over. 

            "Are you all right?" Kagome asked.

            "I will be," he said, taking a huge breath. "Phew...I thought those clouds would never go away," Kagome nodded, and turned back to the huge circle of destruction and death behind them. 

            "Naraku _is_ dead, right?" she asked. 

            "Yes...he is dead. The clouds were just a side affect," Inuyasha replied.

            "Right. His body couldn't contain the dark energy since he wasn't alive," she said. Then a thought struck her. "Hey, do you think Miroku, Sango and Shippo are all right? The campsite wasn't very far from where we fought with Naraku," Inuyasha stood up, having caught his breath.

            "I don't know. I hope they're all right," the hanyou replied, still breathing a little hard. 

            "Hey, are you all right?" Sango asked, as Miroku sank to his knees, holding his wrist in pain. Shippo jumped down off of her shoulder, concerned.

            "I'm ok...I've just never taken in that much evil energy before," he said, letting go of his hand and standing up.

            "What do you think _caused_ it?" Shippo asked.

            "I'll give you three guesses, and the first two don't count," Sango said, looking in the direction that the energy had come from. Nothing but blackened earth from the ashes of the trees and plants remained for miles. Behind them, the dead forest extended, until finally dissipating almost half a mile behind them. A small patch of grass that they were standing on was the only proof of life for miles and miles around. 

            "It was probably Naraku. No one else could release something of that magnitude," the monk replied. Sango nodded.

            "D-do you think Kagome and Inuyasha are ok?" Shippo asked. Sango smiled.

            "I know those two. I'm sure that they found a way out of this just like we did," she said.

            "I'm willing to bet that they _caused_ this, too," Miroku replied. Sango shook her head.

            "You're probably right," 

            "Are you _sure_ that the shards are this way?" Inuyasha asked.

            "Positive," Kagome replied. Then, she cupped her hands around her mouth. "SANGO!! SHIPPO!! MIROKU! KIRARA!!" she called. Inuyasha crinkled his nose. He tried to smell the air for them, but all he could smell was the dust and ashes that the two kicked up into the air as they walked back through the destruction. 

            "This is getting us nowhere," Inuyasha stated the blatantly obvious. Searching for the jewel shards in this mess was like looking for a needle in a haystack. The only difference was that Kagome could sense pretty much where they were. But, the hanyou was willing to bit that the shards had been blown to the four corners of the Earth with the evil clouds of destruction. 

            "Hey, look up ahead!" Kagome said, ignoring Inuyasha's earlier comment. Inuyasha looked past her, and saw a crater in the ground, in sharp contrast to the flat area around them. The clouds of destruction had not only killed the plants and animals, but they had flattened the land. Ant hills and mountains alike were vaporized in the clouds of evil. 

            'I'll bet that's where Naraku was," Inuyasha said, as they jogged up to the crater. They peered over the edge, and gasped in surprise. Crater was an understatement...it was more like a pit. The crater cut deep into the earth, like a bomb had exploded at the bottom of it and the blast had only traveled upward. Inuyasha wordlessly grabbed Kagome and put her on his back like they were 'flying'. He jumped into the pit, free falling down into the earth, which turned into stone the farther they fell. He landed effortlessly at the bottom, and Kagome climbed off of his back. She knelt down, and picked something up. 

            "Well, here's a start," she said, holding up a large chunk of the Shikon Jewel. 

            "Wow, that's almost half! With the shards we already have and this, the Jewel should almost be complete!" Inuyasha exclaimed. Kagome nodded, and took her piece of the jewel off of her neck, holding them both up to compare. There was a flash of pink light, and suddenly the two pieces joined together. 

            "Wha?" they both exclaimed in surprise. The pink light glowed steadily brighter, engulfing them both, until it became a bright white light. Kagome blinked, and looked at the jewel in her hands. It was whole again! She almost couldn't believe it. The light subsided, and they both blinked to regain their sight.

            "Inuyasha..." she started. 

            "The jewel...it's complete..." he said. She nodded. She swallowed, and looked at the floor. Inuyasha could see unshed tears in her eyes. But why?

            "Kagome...why are you crying?" he asked her. She started to shake.

            "Inuyasha..." she started, and looked up at him. He felt like his heart would break at the look on her face. "Once the Jewel is used, I can't come back here," she said. 

            "Of course you can! If you want to come back, I'll just go and get you-"

            "No. I don't know what my purpose was here in the first place, but I have the feeling that now that Naraku is dead and the Jewel is complete, my purpose here is done. And after that, I won't be able to return," she said. She was crying now. 

            Inuyasha started to say something, but she beat him to it. 

            "But...I love you...and I don't want to leave," she said, and tried to say something else, but her tears were choking her. Inuyasha just couldn't bear to see her crying any longer. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, letting her cry into his kimono. Two tears of his own escaped from his eyes, landing on the stone floor below. He hadn't allowed himself to cry in such a long time, since the death of his mother. 

            '_No, I have to be strong,_' he thought, and shook away the tears that so desperately wanted to come.               

            "Kagome," he whispered to her, "It'll be all right. We'll make this work...some how," She pulled away from him slightly. 

            "When I was stuck in the well that time after that big battle with Sesshomaru...it felt like my heart was going to break. And that was only a week. But an eternity..." she started. He put a clawed finger up to her lips.

            "I know," he said, looking down with empathy in his eyes. "That week felt like an eternity to me too," he admitted. Then he stepped away from her, and took the completed Shikon Jewel in his hands, holding it up.

            "Shikon no Tama, I know you can hear me," he started, a look of determination on his face. "Listen, I know it's not your department to grant wishes-" he started.

            "What are you doing?!" Kagome demanded. He ignored her, continuing.

            "Well, just grant this one! Make it so that the Bone Eater's Well will always keep it's powers, so that Kagome and I can both travel through it, even after you are gone and our purposes are served!" he said. As soon as he stopped speaking a bright pink light emitted from the jewel. 

            _Silly hanyou_ said a voice, laughing. Kagome and Inuyasha opened their eyes, and found that they seemed to be standing on crystal. A woman was standing before them, dressed in a pink kimono. Around her neck was the Shikon no tama, on a cord that seemed to be made of crystal as well. 

            "Who are you?" Kagome asked. The woman laughed again.

            _That is none of your concern_. Inuyasha and Kagome heard the voice, but the woman's mouth did not move. She was speaking to them telepathically.

            "Are you the Shikon no tama?" Inuyasha asked.

            _More or less.__ And you two are the mortals that reunited the jewel._

            "Yes, but I am also the one that shattered it," Kagome replied, guilty.

            _Do not blame yourself for that, Kagome Higurashi. It was destined to happen._

            "How do you know my name?" Kagome asked.

            _You were a keeper of the Shikon Jewel. I know all who are keepers of it. _

            "So you knew Kikyo?" Inuyasha asked. 

            _Yes. Sort of. She protected the Jewel, but she also used it. Anyway, she is not of importance right now. What is of importance is your wish._

            "Can you grant it?" Inuyasha asked.

            _Yes, but I sense that you have another wish, possibly more wanted than this one_.

            "Well...yes. I want to become a full demon. But...not if I have to lose Kagome," Inuyasha said. The woman laughed, startling the couple.

            _Do you not think that, with all of the immense power of the Shikon Jewel, that I can only grant **one** wish?_

            "Y-you mean you can grant them both?" Kagome asked.

            _I can grant as many as you want, so long as you are pure in heart and intentions._ said the woman. Inuyasha and Kagome stared at her, and then smiled, and turned and hugged eachother for joy. All of their troubles would soon be over!

            "All right, then make the well retain it's powers, so that both Kagome and I can use it until the day that we die. And..." Inuyasha started, and blushed at this point, "If we happen to have children, umm, well, y'know..." he said. Kagome let go of him, and turned to the woman.

            "I think you know what me means," she said. The woman nodded.

            _It shall be done._

            The two just grinned triumphantly. Inuyasha's blush faded, and he suddenly became serious.             "Also, could you make me full demon...but not evil like some of the other demons," Inuyasha said. The woman nodded again.

            _Anything else?___

"Can you tell us if our friends-Miroku, Sango and Shippo-are still alive?" she asked.

            _They are. _

            "Then, could you make it so that our friends can go through the well too?" Kagome asked. The woman nodded.

            _It can be done._

            "Has Miroku's hand healed?" she asked. The woman nodded.

            _It is nothing more than a scar, now. The curse on him and his family has ended now that Naraku is dead._ Kagome thought for a second.

            "What about Kohaku?" she asked.

            _Sango's__ brother is sleeping peacefully under the watchful eyes of two farmers a few miles north of here. Naraku is now dead, so his control over him is gone. Kohaku is now a normal boy again._

            "Terrific! Okay, this is my last request, can you bring him here?"

            _But of course._ The woman replied. She turned to Inuyasha. _Anything else?_

            "Nope. Just those three...er, four wishes. I think we can handle anything else on our own," the soon-to-be-no-longer-a-hanyou said. The woman bowed to both of them, and they returned the gesture politely. 

            _Good-bye...for now. And have a good life. You deserve it._

            There was a flash of light, and Kagome and Inuyasha found themselves back at the bottom of the pit. The Shikon jewel was no longer in Inuyasha's hands. The two blinked to adjust to the absence of light. Kagome turned to say something to Inuyasha but shrieked in surprise. 

            "What's wrong?" he asked. 

            "You have a tail! And blue marks on your face!" she exclaimed. Inuyasha blinked, and swished his poofy white tail so that he could see it.

            "Wow...you're right! That means I'm a demon now!" he exclaimed. The two hugged for joy, and Inuyasha once again scooped her up in his arms, and jumped out of the pit. There was a flash of light, and there was Kohaku, sleeping peacefully on the ground near the crater, blissfully unaware of what had happened. Inuyasha put Kagome down, and picked up the slumbering child.

            "Which way are the others?" he asked. Kagome took a moment to sense them out, and then pointed to the East. Inuyasha smiled.

            "Let's go," he said, and swished his tail a little in a triumphant way. 

            _'Sesshomaru can no longer call me a bastard hanyou, and Kouga can no longer-_' he stopped dead in his tracks.

            "Kouga," he said. Kagome also stopped.

            "Oh no! That's right, we forgot all about him! The cloud of destruction must have-"

            _Have no worries. I'll consider that another wish_. Said a very familiar voice in their heads. 

            "Hey, are you still here?" Kagome asked.

            _In a sense, I'll always be with you. But I can still grant wishes and talk to you because my presence hasn't faded away yet. Besides, I knew you were gonna forget something. So, you want Kouga brought back to life, unharmed?_

"Umm...yes," Inuyasha said, surprising Kagome.

            _All righty, it can be done. And I suppose you want this area back to a forest?_

            "That'd be nice. Thank you!" 

            _It shall be done. Now, if you have any other wishes...you'd better think of them fast_. 

            With a flash of light, they were suddenly surrounded by the lush forest that had been there before, and they suddenly heard a groan off to their right. They looked at eachother and rushed over to find Kouga, holding his head in pain, and just sitting up.

            "Kouga! Are you all right?!" Kagome asked, kneeling beside him. 

            "I just had the strangest dream that I was in a white light, and there were lots of weird looking people in robes telling me that I had to put on a robe and a strange glowy circle thing on my head..." Kouga muttered. Then he turned to look at Kagome.

            "Oh! Hello Kagome!" he said, and started to glomp her like he always did, but stopped himself. He gave her a small smile. 

            "What's up?" he asked. She suddenly hugged him, surprising him.           

            "I'm so glad you're alive, Kouga!" she exclaimed, and stood up, standing beside Inuyasha. 

            "Kagome," Kouga started, clasping her hands. She abruptly pulled them away from him.

            "Don't get the wrong idea. I love Inuyasha...and I always will. But I love you as a friend. I'm sure that there is someone out there that will love you the way I never can," she said. 

            "Well said, Kagome. Thank you for caring about me...friend," the wolf demon replied.

            "Come on, let's go find the others," Kagome said.

            "Yeah, 'cause this kid isn't light," the no-longer-hanyou replied, swishing his new tail.

            "Hey...uh...since when have you had a tail?" Kouga asked, pointing at Inuyasha's furry new appendage. Inuyasha looked smug and proud.

            "Since I became full demon!" he replied.

            "A few minutes ago," Kagome added. Inuyasha fell over, twitching. 

            Miroku, Sango, Shippo and Kirara were walking through what seemed to be an endless expanse of dirt and ashes. Shippo had since turned into a balloon to avoid stepping in the dust. Miroku, in the lead, suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

            "What is it?" Sango asked, stepping up beside him. She gasped. There was a pink light rolling toward them in waves. Behind it, trees and grass and other things were appearing out of thin air. Shippo and Kirara also stood awestruck, beside Sango.

            "Okay...this is different," the demon exterminator said.

            "Should we be running right now?" Shippo asked.

            "I don't think so. Something has caused this forest to be returned to it's previous state, and obviously this will not hurt us," Miroku said. Just as he said that, the pink light washed past them, and grass suddenly appeared under their feet. 

            "See, there's nothing to worry ab-" Miroku started, but was interrupted as he and Sango suddenly found themselves precariously balanced on a tree limb. 

            "Perhaps you spoke too soon, Miroku," Sango said, glaring at him a little. He turned to talk to her, but that upset the balance on the tree limb, and caused them both to fall off and tumble to the grassy ground in a disorderly pile of limbs and clothes. Had she and Miroku not been 'taking baths' so much lately, she would have probably whapped him several times on the head with her boomerang because of the way they had landed, but at the moment, she didn't care. She didn't feel like caring, she just wanted to enjoy the kiss. Of course, that didn't happen.

           "Can't leave you people alone for fifteen minutes, can we?" said an arrogant voice from nearby. Miroku and Sango regretfully stopped kissing and got to their feet.            

            "It's good to see you!" called another voice. Sango turned toward the voices, to see Kagome making her way toward them through the trees, followed by Inuyasha and...Kouga?! She looked more closely. Yup, that was definitely Kouga. 

            '_Jigoku__ must be frozen_," she thought, because Kouga wasn't professing his love to Kagome OR trying to rip Inuyasha's arms off. Speaking of Inuyasha, was that a TAIL?! And what's with the blue stripes on his face? Something WEIRD happened. But what's that he's carrying?

            "Kagome!!" Shippo exclaimed, and ran toward her. 

            "Hey Shippo," she said, catching the tiny kitsune as he jumped toward her. Sango examined the thing in Inuyasha's arms more closely. It was a person. A child, in fact. The child had black hair, and looked strangely familiar. 

            "Kohaku?!" she demanded, running up to Inuyasha.

            "In the flesh," Inuyasha replied, handing the boy to Sango. She could barely hold him, so she set him down, leaning his back against a tree. Miroku chose this moment to speak.

            "WHAT IN THE NAME OF KAMI-SAMA IS GOING **ON** HERE?!" 

            And so, Inuyasha and Kagome explained things to them, first about the death of Naraku, explaining the black clouds, Miroku no longer having his Wind Tunnel, and Kohaku no longer being controlled. Miroku and Sango jumped up and hugged eachother in joy, each for a different reason. Miroku didn't have to live with his curse any more, and Sango didn't have to live with her brother being controlled by an evil monster any more. Sango immediately rushed over to where she had left Kohaku, still asleep, and gently shook him by the shoulders.

            "Kohaku! Little brother! It's time to wake up now," she said to him. His eyes slowly opened, and he blinked.

            "Sango?" he asked. She smiled, tears in her eyes, and hugged him.

            "Kohaku!! You're alive!" she exclaimed.

            "Is it really _you_ Sango? But I thought you were dead!" Kohaku protested.

            "Me too, brother," she replied. The siblings smiled, finally reunited. Sango suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder, and looked up at Miroku. 

            "It's good to see you happy, Sango," he said, a genuine smile of happiness on his face that he hadn't worn in so long. 

            "Who's this?" Kohaku asked. Sango stood up, and Kohaku followed her.

            "This is Miroku. He's-" she started.

            "Just think of me as a big brother," he said, cautiously putting an arm around Sango's shoulders. Kohaku looked at them, bewildered.

            "Geez, just how long _was_ I out for?" he asked. They just smiled. Sango turned around to look at Inuyasha and Kagome.

            "How can I ever thank you?" she asked. 

            "It was nothing," Kagome replied. Sango nodded gratefully. 

            "I just have one question, Inuyasha," she said. Inuyasha looked at her, confused. 

            "The tail?" she, Shippo and Miroku asked at the same time. He suddenly looked smug.

            "I am very proud to announce that I am now completely, totally and fully demon!" he said.

            "Shikon no tama?" Shippo asked.

            "Of course," he replied. 

            "Well guys, what are we going to do now that Naraku is dead and the Shikon no tama is gone?" Sango asked. 

            "Let's go home," Miroku suggested, referring to the quaint little village by the Bone Eater's Well that they had all begun to call home. Kagome put a finger to her chin.

            "Actually, if you guys don't mind, I was hoping we could all go to my house in the future," she said. Everyone but Inuyasha looked at her, dumbstruck.

            "Umm...are you forgetting that we can't pass through the well?" Shippo asked. Kagome and Inuyasha both grinned.

            "You can now!" they both said. 

            "Shikon no tama?" Sango asked, after the initial shock of it all passed.

            "Of course," they replied. 


End file.
